Ed-tech startup prepares RMG workers for an automated future
New York-based Shimmy Technologies is helping and upskilling factory workers in Bangladesh with the technical skills needed to sustain jobs in the age of automation through gamification
So far, Shimmy Technologies has trained 1,468 RMG workers; and 70% are women. Currently, pilot programs are underway in five factories. Photo: courtesy
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So far, Shimmy Technologies has trained 1,468 RMG workers; and 70% are women. Currently, pilot programs are underway in five factories. Photo: courtesy
When Sarah Krasley flew into Dhaka airport last month, she was overjoyed. She remembers seeing the green fields, the rivers and the brightly colored clothes hanging from the clotheslines on the rooftops. She was finally back, “I was there [Dhaka] right before the pandemic hit and we couldn’t come back. This trip [March 2022] is particularly wretched“Sarah said.
Sarah Krasley is the founder and CEO of New York-based Shimmy Technologies, a maker of industrial ed-tech for factory workers. And over time, the start-up (founded in 2016) made its way to Dhaka in 2018 and formed partnerships with factories.
“As a little girl growing up in Pennsylvania, I had no idea Bangladesh would be such a big part of my life,” Sarah said in a Zoom interview during her short trip to Dhaka in March, “How a country that I speak to, have meetings every day, wherever I am.”
Shimmy helps and upskills factory workers with the technical skills needed to sustain jobs in the age of automation through gamification. Sarah points out how much automation is happening, and a reality of this transition is that “advanced” work roles – which involve handling machines – in factories are being given to male employees.
As a result, RMG workers are being left behind. A 2019 BBS survey indicates that the number of female workers is only 46.18% in the sector, and in a 2019 Forbes report, a CPD study was quoted saying that women historically made up 80% of the workforce. RMG workforce in Bangladesh, but automation has seen this figure reduced to 53%.
How does Shimmy Upskill work?
Shimmy Technologies developed Upskill. It is an application based on a 4.5 hour video game that runs on a tablet. Once a partnership or collaboration is established, Shimmy usually talks to factory management first and learns what machines the factory has, their plans for machine purchases in the future, and any gaps. skills in the workforce.
Then, they design “relevant” modules that “we deliver on our tablets”, specifies Sarah. Shimmy’s trainers (who were, at the time, eight advanced machine operators) came to the factory, installed the tablets and trained the workers. “Workers log into the game with their cell phone number,” Sarah added.
Interns also participate in Whatsapp groups where they can ask Shimmy career-related questions. “They also subscribe to our TikTok channels,” Sarah said, where “the trainers give them byte-sized lessons in machine maintenance.”
Shimmy Technologies, founded in 2016, moved to Dhaka in 2018. Photo: Courtesy
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Shimmy Technologies, founded in 2016, moved to Dhaka in 2018. Photo: Courtesy
So far, Shimmy Technologies has trained 1,468 RMG workers; and 70% are women. And currently, pilot programs are underway in five factories.
In addition to training and field operations coordinators, machine trainers and the national manager, Shimmy also has an industrial engineer on staff. “Because the way factories see the value of that is that Shimmy helps improve efficiency. So being able to calculate that, being able to see how the process flow is improving [is vital]”Sarah said.
What is the effect of having trainers? “I’ve learned in my own life that it’s very hard to dream and imagine yourself somewhere if you don’t have an example,” Sarah said. “So that was really inspiring for the workers we spoke to.”
The impact is considerable
This type of training and work seems to have a profound impact beyond the labor market. “What I underestimated was how technical skill training in an advanced machine actually has a wider echo effect,” said Sarah, who heard from a few workers on this trip. and lots of workers from previous years on how the training ultimately leads women to gain confidence at home too.
“Our trainers not only help them learn advanced machine skills, but they [also] teach them to press, sweep and press; like all the things you and I do a thousand times a day. They’ve never done it before. The workers are afraid of breaking the tablet,” Sarah said. And after the training, some women no longer feel intimidated to use the only smartphone in their household.
“Imagine what else she can do there, what else she can learn, connect with friends. And I didn’t know we were helping with that too,” Sarah added.
From Allentown, Pennsylvania to Dhaka, Bangladesh
Born and raised in Allentown, Pennsylvania – the same town that Billy Joel sang about and made famous – Sarah Krasley noticed, in very close and personal proximity, the impact of automation and technology on the steel industry .
“My grandfather, my uncles and my father worked in the steel mills. When I was little, the factory closed [and] because he failed to adapt to technology in a way that swept workers along with the change, hundreds of thousands of people were laid off. And it took decades for my hometown to recover economically,” Sarah said.
This memory, coupled with Sarah’s fascination with how things are made, made her think a lot about the role of technology in this change.
Sarah has worked in different manufacturing industries such as automotive, furniture and consumer electronics, and has seen first hand how automation was being introduced and how the workforce needed to support this change.
And then in 2016, Sarah founded Shimmy. “We’ve started projects at many different factories,” Sarah said, kicking off the pilots. “And the very first ones that said yes were Bangladeshi factories. The others were like, ‘It’s too crazy, or you know, it’s not like that. It’s done.’ And there was this attitude of yes, that’s not how it’s done, but you know what, let’s try a pilot and what’s the harm in that.”
First pilot in New York
In May 2018, the pilots were launched as a test in Jackson Heights and Kensington – the two main Bangladeshi communities in New York.
“It was much cheaper to take the subway to Jackson Heights than to fly to Dhaka,” Sarah said, so they flew there with their first prototype.
Sarah and her team have worked with a few community organizations that welcome new Bangladeshis to the neighborhood. “And we were able to find new immigrants who had some RMG experience,” Sarah recalls. “So they were our first patient beta testers and they told us what worked and what didn’t.
And then we were able to make those changes and prepare for our first pilots here [Dhaka].” And in July 2018, Shimmy came to Dhaka.
Photo: courtesy
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Photo: courtesy
Sarah’s relationship with Bangladesh dates back to 2013, the year of her first trip to the country following the Rana Plaza collapse. “The first trip, I embarked with an organization [called] Change Associates Ltd who provide leadership and soft skills training for garment workers,” said Sarah, “They have really opened my eyes to what is useful for garment workers and what can bring them A support.
And I think a lot of my ideas, before coming, to fit into it, were way off. So I’m grateful to them for giving me that lens, in the beginning, to see the world through. This trip has been truly transformative.”
Sarah took Bengali cooking classes and also started learning the language. “I can read English characters that say Bengali phonetics,” Sarah said through her laughter, “I’ll get there, I promise.”
Automation and the Covid-19 pandemic have exacerbated labor shortages. Shimmy conducted research during the lockdowns and one of the findings showed a drop in the number of women staying. “If only one person can hold a job, then the husband has pride in going there and being the breadwinner,” Sarah said.
“Additionally, the labor shortage is creating an increase in purchases of advanced machinery and automation. We need to ensure that they [workers] know how to make them work. Also, there’s equal access to these jobs because right now they’re mostly for men,” Sarah said, “And we need to help female workers have the confidence to try this training and spark that imagination. for wanting to move on that career path.”
According to Sarah, training can be the first step into the job market and there may be a better chance that the worker will stick around.
In many cases, there is a resistance to worker development that stems from myopia. For example, what if workers “jump to another factory” and “it will cost me more money”.
However, “every time I come to Bangladesh, I meet more and more visionary factories who understand that [upskilling] is a strategic perspective,” Sarah explained, because workers can operate the machines more efficiently and “it’s better for the business in the long run.”
After the first round of pilots in Bangladesh in 2018, Shimmy also traveled to Indonesia and did pilots there as well.
Are you going to continue your operations in Indonesia? “Maybe. I think we’re all in it [on] Bangladesh. We will continue to evolve here. We have an incredible team here. This is where we really want to anchor our business in South Asia.”
She further added, “I can possibly see Shimmy perform [operations], in the years to come, in VR, in the metaverse. But for now, the appropriate technology is a tablet.” And as the RMG industry seeks to diversify into other segments, Sarah is also considering expanding its reach into other industries.
Sarah Krasley, Founder and CEO, Shimmy Technologies. Photo: courtesy
Sarah Krasley, Founder and CEO, Shimmy Technologies. Photo: courtesy